17.— (1) A person in respect of whom section 15 applies who is detained in a prison or a children detention school may be arrested again for a relevant offence in respect of which he or she has been acquitted in accordance with, and only in accordance with, this section.

(2) Subject to subsection (3), a judge of the District Court who is satisfied—

(a) by information on oath by a member of the Garda Síochána not below the rank of superintendent that the member concerned has information regarding a relevant offence in respect of which the person was acquitted which has come to the knowledge of the Garda Síochána only since the person’s acquittal, and

(b) that the information referred to in paragraph (a) is likely to reveal or confirm the existence of new and compelling evidence in relation to the person’s suspected participation in the relevant offence for which his or her arrest is sought,

may authorise the arrest of that person.

(3) A judge of the District Court may authorise the arrest of the person concerned in respect of, and only of, the relevant offence for which the person was acquitted.

(4) A person arrested pursuant to this section—

(a) shall be taken forthwith to a Garda Station and may, subject to subsection (6), be detained there for such period or periods as is authorised under section 4 of the Act of 1984, and

(b) subject to this section, shall be dealt with as though he or she had been detained under that section.

(5) Subsections (4), (5) and (5A) of section 4 and section 10 of the Act of 1984 shall not apply to a person arrested and detained under this section.

(6) If at any time during the detention of a person under this section there are no longer reasonable grounds for—

(a) suspecting that the person has committed the relevant offence in respect of which he or she was arrested under this section, or

(b) believing that his or her detention is necessary for the proper investigation of the relevant offence,

the detention shall be terminated.

(7) On termination of the detention in accordance with subsection (6) or by reason of the expiry of the period or periods referred to in subsection (4)(a), the member of the Garda Síochána in charge of the Garda Station where the person is detained shall transfer him or her, or cause him or her to be transferred back to the governor of the prison or, as the case may be, the Director of the children detention school where the person was detained at the time of the arrest under this section.

(8) Proceedings under this section shall be heard otherwise than in public.

(9) This section shall not apply to a relevant offence in respect of which a person was the subject of a special verdict under section 5 of the Criminal Law (Insanity) Act 2006.

(10) Nothing in this section shall affect the power of the Court to issue a warrant for the arrest of a person in respect of whom an order has been made under subsection (1) of section 10.